Cat Ba Island is one of the well-known destinations in the North of Vietnam for tourists. Thanks to the untouched scenery, calm atmosphere, beautiful beaches, and primary forest, Cat Ba Island is ideal for relaxing, exploring nature, and joining adventurous activities. Let’s explore the top 11 amazing things to do in Cat Ba Island with Handspan Travel Indochina!

Swimming and sunbathing on the beaches

Swimming and sunbathing on the beaches is one of the things to do in Cat Ba Island you should join. The island is famous for hundreds of small beaches with crystal jade seawater. Cat Co 1,2,3 are the most attractive beaches, connected by a  small wooden bridge along the mountainside. Cat Co 1 has the most bustling atmosphere, while Cat Co 2 is more suitable for those who like a quieter area. The beach of Cat Co 3 is less traveled than Cat Co 1 & 2 because it is pretty deep and wavy, which is ideal for good swimmers. However, the tide will come up quickly around 6.30 PM, so you are not advised to swim here after that time.

Cat Co Beach

Cat Co Beach

Besides, you can choose to swim on the Tung Thu beach, 2 kilometers from the center of Cat Ba Town. Coming to the Tung Thu beach, you will have a chance to join swimming, water motor, etc. 

Exploring Lan Ha Bay

Exploring Lan Ha Bay is also among the things to do in Cat Ba Island. Located on the East of Cat Ba Island, Lan Ha Bay is an appealing spot for every tourist. The bay is as beautiful as Halong Bay; however, you will find it more isolated and tranquil. Coming here, you will be immersed in the pristine natural scenery of various limestone mountains and caves in different shapes, such as Guoc Islet, Doi Islet, Ham Rong Cave, Ca Cave, etc. Besides, there are many small islands with long sandy banks, ideal for swimming or lying on the sandy beaches.

Lan Ha Bay

From the Ben Beo Port, you can hire a private canoe, boat, or tender if you would like to follow your own itinerary. After buying a ticket at VND 80,000, you can start your trip. Otherwise, you can join an 8-hour day trip to visit Lan Ha Bay with exciting experiences below.

• Staying on the boat and admiring Lan Ha Bay scenery
• Kayaking in the Dark and Light Caves area 
• Swimming in the Three Peach Islets (Ba Trai Dao)
• Dropping in the Monkey Island
• Having lunch on the boat

Ba Trai Dao Islet

To book a one-day trip to explore the Lan Ha Bay, please contact us at: info@handspan.com.

Visiting Monkey Island

Is visiting Monkey Island among the things to do in Cat Ba Island? Yes, definitely. From Cat Ba Island, staying on the boat through Cai Beo floating village and some small islets, you will reach Monkey Island. Coming to the island, you will catch up with many naughty and lovely monkeys on the way.

Monkeys in Cat Ba Island

Besides, Monkey Island possesses two beautiful natural beaches: Cat Dua 1 and Cat Dua 2. While Cat Dua 1 is longer, broader, and more crowded, Cat Dua 2 is smaller but more private. Also, if you are an adventurous lover, you can climb to the peak of the mountain here to have a panoramic view of Lan Ha Bay with hundreds of small and large islets. 

Monkey Island

If you would like to stay overnight on Monkey Island, you can choose the Monkey Island Resort. The resort provides you with facilities and services such as a campfire, BBQ party, karaoke on the beach, or seeing corals. Besides, kayaking, ping pong, and billiards are also available. 

Monkey Island Resort

Let’s visit Monkey Island, play with monkeys, and immerse yourself in the cool-water beaches here!

Kayaking surrounding the Dark and Light Cave (Ca Cave) area

Would you like to add kayaking surrounding the Dark and Light Cave as one of the things to do in Cat Ba Island? The Dark and Light Cave area is one of the best spots for kayaking, with four caves in an area, including Dark & Light Cave, Doi Cave, and Sua Cave. Dark Cave is the largest but relatively narrow and dark, while the other three caves have high cave arches.

Kayaking around the Dark and Light Cave

The journey to explore all four caves is more than five kilometers, lasting about one and a half hours. Kayaking through the caves, you will feel amazed by the vast water area surrounded by majestic high limestone mountains. Also, you will have a chance to admire hundreds of beautiful stalactites. Besides, the Dark and Light Cave area has exceptionally high biodiversity; therefore, you can catch up with White-headed langur, Golden Monkey, Brown Monkey, etc. It’s time for you to go kayaking, float along the water, and enjoy the fresh air and surrounding scenery. 

Visiting Cai Beo Fishing Village

Visiting Cai Beo Fishing Village (or Vung O Village) is also on the list of the best things to do in Cat Ba Island. This fishing village is one of the oldest floating villages in Vietnam, with more than 500 families living on fishing. In the majestic mountain scenery of Cat Ba Island, you will see floating houses connected by a small bridge and fish cages. 

Cai Beo Fishing Village

Coming to Cai Beo Fishing Village, you can experience the daily life of local people here. The boat is both the means of livelihood and home for local people. They travel, exchange, buy, and sell everything from fishing nets to daily necessities in this floating house. By hiring a boat, you can see how local people do fishing and agriculture, admire the majestic scenery of the bay, and enjoy the unique dishes made from fish, shrimp, etc., made by local people. 

Let’s visit Cai Beo Fishing Village and enjoy the tranquil pace of life here!

Dropping in Viet Hai Fishing Village

Viet Hai Fishing Village is an old village located deep inside the Cat Ba National Park. If you would like to escape from city hustle and bustle, dropping in Viet Hai Fishing Village will be a suitable choice. This is also one of the things to do in Cat Ba Island you should refer to. 

Viet Hai Fishing Village

To reach Viet Hai Fishing Village, you can choose the seaway or forest road. If you decide to travel by seaway, let’s buy a boat ticket, hire a tender, or canoe at Beo Port. If you have long endurance and good health, you can consider trekking through Cat Ba National Park to get to Viet Hai Fishing Village. 

Coming here, besides cycling to enjoy the beautiful natural scenery and a tranquil atmosphere, you will have a chance to experience local people’s lives. Let’s come to the Viet Hai fishing village and learn how to do farming and fishing!

Cycling in Viet Hai Fishing Village

You can choose to experience those things above yourself, join a one-day trip, or enjoy overnight cruises. There are many cruises running through different routes in Lan Ha Bay, such as Heritage Cruises Cat Ba Archipelago, Stellar of the Seas, Rosy Cruise, etc. 

Heritage Cruises Cat Ba Archipelago

For more detailed information about Lan Ha Bay’s routes and cruises, please contact us at: info@handspan.com.

Snorkeling

One of the most attractive things to do in Cat Ba Island is snorkeling. Thanks to a diverse coral system with rich and colorful species, snorkeling is more developed in Cat Ba Island. Although the corals here are not as large as on beaches in the South of Vietnam, they are a featured character in the North. 

Snorkeling in Cat Ba Island

Coming to Cat Ba Island, you can find many spots to enjoy snorkeling. They include Ang Tham, Cat Dua, Mui Hong, Ba Trai Dao, Dau Be - Hang Trai Islets, and Long Chau. These areas’ coral reefs are valuable for conservation and eco-tourism in Cat Ba Island. Besides coral reefs, you can also find different kinds of colorful fishes here, such as betta fish, Orange spotted Spinefoot, starry triggerfish, etc. 

If you are interested in snorkeling in Cat Ba Island, do not hesitate to contact Handspan’s consultants. 

Exploring caves in Cat Ba Island

Besides beautiful beaches, Cat Ba Island also has many marvelous caves with mysterious things. Therefore, exploring these caves is also among the most exciting things to do on Cat Ba Island you should not miss. Let’s refer to these caves below.

• Thien Long Cave

Located in Phu Long Commune, Cat Hai District, Thien Long Cave is one of the untouched caves in Cat Ba, attracting many tourists. While the cave’s door is relatively narrow, the layered space inside is totally different and amazes everyone. 

Thien Long Cave has three separate caves with distinctive beauty. The first cave welcomes you with glistening layers of stalactites in the ceiling and on the ground. These stalactites have the shapes like different animals, such as frogs, tortoises, lions, snakes, etc. Whereas, the second cave looks like a majestic castle with natural sound from the stalactites. Although the third cave is quite hard to reach, it is worth climbing over the big turtle stalactite to admire the magnificent scenery. 

• Trung Trang Cave

Trung Trang Cave is the largest cave in Cat Ba, accommodating hundreds of visitors simultaneously. When going inside the cave, you will have to stoop throughout the length of more than 300m of the cave. However, you will not feel disappointed with the beauty of countless stalactites that are still sharp and iridescent. Getting out of the cave, you will have a chance to immerse yourself in the green space of the national park and admire the natural scenery here.

Trung Trang Cave

• Hoa Cuong Cave

Visiting Hoa Cuong Cave, you will be amazed by the amazing scenery and colorful stalactites in humanoid and animal shapes. Especially, the cave looks more vibrant with the small lakes alternately distributed under the ground. 

Hoa Cuong Cave

• Quan Y Cave

Quan Y Cave is 13 kilometers from Cat Ba Town’s center. Coming here, you can admire the cave’s natural beauty with various-shaped stalactites while learning about Vietnam during wartime. There are three floors and 17 rooms with different functions inside the cave, such as patients’ rooms, emergency operating room, bathroom, kitchen, cinema, etc. 

Quan Y Cave

Quan Y Cave

Let’s come to Cat Ba Island and visit these incredible caves! 

Admiring the scenery from the Cannon Fort (Phao Dai Than Cong)

Admiring the scenery from the Cannon Fort (Phao Dai Than Cong) is also one of the awesome things to do in Cat Ba Island. While this spot was an important place during the time war, it is famous for tourists now.

Cannon Fort in Cat Ba Island

Thanks to the great location, 177 meters above sea level, Cannon Fort is indeed an ideal place to appreciate a panoramic view of Cat Ba Island. There are three observatories in different directions here. Let’s see what you can admire from each of the observatories. 

• The first observatory (The Southwest Observatory)

From this observatory, you can see the charming beauty of Cat Co 1 and Cat Co 2 beaches with long-stretching sand and crystal seawater. Far away, Khoa Islet, Long Chau Islet with Dau Do Son Island lighthouse, and wild pineapple forest are also within your sight. 

• The second observatory (The West observatory) and the third observatory

The second observatory allows you to watch the daily life of local people in Cat Ba Town, Voi Phuc Mountain, and Cac Ong Islet. Whereas, in the third observatory, you can use the telescope to admire a vast area of forest and sea, Ben Beo Port with cruises taking tourists to the Lan Ha Bay. 

View from Cannon Fort 

Trekking around and visiting the Cat Ba National Park

Cat Ba National Park

Cat Ba National Park, one of the most well-known spots in Hai Phong, is also the largest ecosystem in the North of Vietnam. Trekking around this national park is absolutely among the things to do in Cat Ba Island you should refer to. Coming here, you can explore the forest ecosystem on the limestone mountain, mangrove ecosystem, and marine forest ecosystem along with coral reefs. Let’s spend your day exploring these favorable trekking routes below.

• Trung Trang cave’s east area to Uy Ban cave, Kim Giao forest to Ngu Lam Peak

This route lasts for two to three hours, suitable for those who do not have much time to explore Cat Ba National Park. Although the road is relatively narrow, it is flat; therefore, it is easy to combine trekking with a bicycle or motorbike to go. 

Ngu Lam Viewpoint in Cat Ba National Park

• Kim Giao to Me Con and Tung Di, May Bau to Quan Cave

Departing from Kim Giao, you will trek through different routes through Cat Ba National Park. These routes vary from walking trails to climbing high cliffs with many forest trees growing around the cliffs, climbing stairs, etc. 

• Ao Ech to Viet Hai Fishing Village

Before reaching Ao Ech, you will pass through Anh Rang Slope, May Bau Peak, Anh Phay Peak, etc., with different terrains, such as the high bamboo forest above, high steps, and sharp cat ears cliffs. From Ao Ech, you will follow the large rocky roads, and steep slopes to get to Viet Hai Fishing Village. 

Let’s immerse yourself in the natural beauty of Cat Ba National Park, and do not forget to check your health before trekking!

Rock climbing

Rock climbing in Cat Ba Island

Rock climbing is one of the most exciting things to do in Cat Ba Island, giving you unforgettable experiences. Besides beautiful beaches, Cat Ba Island also possesses mountains and forests, ideal for rock climbing. Let’s see these spots to join rock climbing in Cat Ba below. 

• Beo Port 

Beo Port is the main port of Cat Ba, 2 kilometers from Cat Ba Town. The cliffs here are pretty easy and safe to climb, although they are quite hard to latch on in the summer. 

• Dau Be Islet

Dao Be Islet’s cliffs have a triangle shape and are straight. When joining rock climbing here, you will have to use the safety lanyard for a safety guarantee. 

• Climbing spot in Lien Minh Commune

Lien Minh Commune is one of the most well-known spots for rock climbing in Cat Ba Island. The cliffs here have different shapes, high and bumpy, suitable for those who would like to experience adventurous activities. 

• Tien Ong Islet

Tien Ong Islet belongs to Lan Ha Bay, more than one hour to travel by boat. The scale of climbing activities on Tien Ong Island is diverse and exciting, with eight medium-level climbing routes. You can freely climb to the peak of the mountain, admire Cat Ba Island’s magnificent scenery, and enjoy immense space and a cool atmosphere here. 

Rock climbing in Cat Ba Island

It’s time for you to prepare the necessary items and conquer the mountain peak! 

In conclusion, Cat Ba Island is a wonderful destination on your trip to Vietnam, thanks to the exciting activities this place offers. Let’s refer to the top 11 amazing things to do in Cat Ba Island above for an unforgettable trip here!